Ethiopia says Eritrean troops are withdrawing from Tigray

NAIROBI (Reuters) – Eritrean forces have begun to withdraw from the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia, Ethiopian Foreign Ministry said, following mounting reports blaming Eritreans for human rights violations, including rape , looting and murder of civilians.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed also described an increase in fighting in recent days against “enemies” who he said mixed with the civilian population.

The United States, Germany, France and other G7 countries on Friday called for a swift, unconditional and verifiable withdrawal of Eritrean soldiers, followed by a political process acceptable to all Ethiopians.

For months Eritrea and Ethiopia denied the presence of Eritrean troops, despite dozens of eyewitness accounts. On March 23, Abiy acknowledged their presence. Eritrea still has not acknowledged that its soldiers are in Ethiopia and denies responsibility for abuse there.

“The Eritrean forces that crossed the border when provoked by the TPLF have now begun to evacuate and the Ethiopian National Defense Force has taken over surveillance of the national border,” Ethiopia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement, referring to the Tigray People’s Liberation Front. , Ethiopia’s main enemies in the conflict.

Abiy said his forces had been conducting major operations in the past three days as it fights enemies on eight fronts to the west and north. He didn’t specifically mention Tigray, but the region is in the north.

“When the junta turned to a guerrilla force, it mingled with the peasants and started moving from one place to another. We will not be able to eliminate it within three months, ”he said in comments in a video on his Facebook page.

Ethiopia sent its troops to Tigray in November to fight the TPLF, then the regional ruling party, which had attacked army bases in the region. At the end of November, the TPLF withdrew from the regional capital of Mekelle and the Ethiopian government declared victory.

Electricity and telephone connections to Tigray have been interrupted for the past four days, making it difficult to verify an Eritrean recording. Last month, Reuters journalists in Tigray saw Eritrean soldiers in major cities and highways far beyond the border area.

Thousands of people have died in the conflict, hundreds of thousands have been displaced from their homes and there is a shortage of food, water and medicine in the region.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said this week that “clashes and ambushes were reported in most parts of the region.” Last month, an aid agency also witnessed the aftermath of an ambush on a military convoy and extrajudicial killings of civilians on a main road immediately afterwards.

The State Department said humanitarian organizations have now been given full access to the region.

OCHA said on its website, “In parts of South and Southeast Tigray, for example, access has been restricted for over a month and the road from Alamata to Mekelle remains closed, blocking humanitarian operations in the area.”

The State Department said a joint investigation with outside experts into alleged human rights violations would start soon and urged donors to send more food and medical aid.